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Car on the Custis

This was truly odd. There was a white sedan on the George Mason connector, just west of the Ballston Connector. A seriously confused woman was behind the wheel. When I came upon her she was trying to back down the connector to the main trail. I stopped her and told her to go up the connector and turn right on George Mason Drive. She said she couldn't because there was a post in the way (hence her backing).

I told her to stay put while I rode up to doublecheck the bollard and confirm it was a flexi-bollard. When I got back she was still trying to back up.

I instructed her that she could drive over the bollard and it would bend down under her car. She was dubious, but I convinced her.

At least three times I asked her "How did you get here?" "Where did you come from?" All she could say was, "I don't know," looking completely flustered.

Did anyone else see this white car on the Custis about 6pm? I have no idea how she got there.

The flexipost shown on the google map at Aberdeen is not there any more, which is good.

The problem is there are no signs or other warnings, or surface treatment that makes it obvious one is entering a trail, that would have told her not to go there. FHWA guidance is to use non-hazardous means first, with bollards only as a last resort. Bollards should never be the default option. There are all sorts of things one can do at trail entrances to discourage or prevent motor vehicles from entering that do not also endanger the trail users.

How about a big one of these mounted on the sound wall?

As I am wont to say, we don't put telephone poles in the middle of streets, so why do we keep putting the equivalent in the middle of trails?

I thought it was considerate of the driver to stay in the lane (rather than take up the whole trail). I think I've seen 3 other drivers in the past six months at least attempt to turn onto the trail at either R or T streets (where the construction/road crew access gates are), but for someone to get this far down the trail is quite an impressive display of obliviousness.

I think she got on here at Aberdeen by Washington Blvd. If she got on at 10th, bobco, she wouldn't have been able to do the hairpin U-turn onto the connector. I think she was westbound to start with.

The flexipost shown on the google map at Aberdeen is not there any more, which is good.

The problem is there are no signs or other warnings, or surface treatment that makes it obvious one is entering a trail, that would have told her not to go there. FHWA guidance is to use non-hazardous means first, with bollards only as a last resort. Bollards should never be the default option. There are all sorts of things one can do at trail entrances to discourage or prevent motor vehicles from entering that do not also endanger the trail users.

How about a big one of these mounted on the sound wall?

As I am wont to say, we don't put telephone poles in the middle of streets, so why do we keep putting the equivalent in the middle of trails?